Playing ball



Oct. 9 1923.

H. R. HART PLAYING BALL Filed Jan. 11, 1922 A TTORNE Y6,

. be, by way of example, with particular ref-,

Patented io ct. 9, 1923. V I

HENRY RIDGEWAY HA'Rnorj uonrcLAIm NEw'JnnsnY; M i

:PLAYING BALL.

1 Application filed January,-11,- 1922. Serial No. 528,433.17

To all wkomitma-ylcohcern: e 7

Be it known that I, HENRY RIDGEWAY HART, a citizenof theUnited States, re sid in the State of New Jersey, have inventedcertain new. and useful Img ing at Montclair,

provements in Playing Balls, of which the following is av specification, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawing, formingapart hereof. I This invention relates to .the type of foot ball, basket ball, punching bag and other; playing devices in which a valve is secured,

to'the bladder. The description herein will erence to a football, but it is to be understood that the invention and claims are not to be limited to the device.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a valve tube of improved structure, and also improved means for securing vthe valve tube to the bladder, these improvements resulting in a simple and thoroughly practiable commercial structure which may be manufactured and applied to bladders at a reasonable cost. In accordance with the invention it is proposed to finish off the blad- I der with a plain hole to receive the valve tube and to provide a special valve tube which shall be adapted to co-operate with the rubber of the bladder in such manner as to clamp the valve tube securely to the bladder and effect an air-tight engagement therebetween. Still another object is to reduce the over-all dimensions of such devices to a point where bulging is entirely eliminated and to associate with the valve tube a closing cap whose head shall be of such form and dimensions as to satisfy the last named requirement and to facilitate the lacing of the cover thereover. These and other objects will appear-more particularly hereinafter in connection with the detai ed description of the embodiment illustrated in the drawing, wherein Figure l is a view in plan of an inflated football embodying the invention, the head of the valve cap being indicated in dotted lines.

Figure 2 is a detail view in section and on a somewhat larger scale showing the relation between the bladder, the valve tube and the cover, and taken on the plane in dicated by the line 22 of Figure 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows.

is removed,,nor is it new'to particular playingv formed with retaining devices Figure 3 shows in, perspective the valve v I tube with the clamping nut and washer by which it the valve cap.

It is understood of course, thatiit is not.

is united with the bladder, and also,

new to provide. a football bladder with a; i

valve to the end that. readilyand thecairretained when the pump lace the cover up over the valve cap. ltjis that proposals heretofore made for accomplishing this desirable condition have been addressedto devices which have not been practical, either because of manufacturing difficulties, expensiveness or deficiencies in use; In accordance with the present invention it is proposed to pensive and thoroughly ,practicablevalve tube and connection readily clamped to air-tight union and be closed by a cap which is of such form as to rest without bulging under the laced cover. As indicated 'in Figure 2, the bladder or is of usual form in, every respect, except that it is formed with a'plain hole a therein of such dimensions as to the receive the upperthreaded end I) of the valve tube 6'. the stem of the valve is indicated at a, but this invention is not concerned with the interior valve structure but only with the character of the tube and the means for securing it to the bladder. The tube 6' carries or has formed integral therewith a rimmed flange b which, when the valve tube is in place, lies against the inner wall of the bladder (1 immediately around the hole a. A slightly flexible washer d of metal or other suitable material is adapted to fit down over the threaded end I) of the valve tube and overlie the outer surface of the bladder a immediately around the hole a. This washer d may also be formed with a rim d for engagement with the yielding rubber of the bladder a. The clamping means is found in a nut e which may be threaded down on to the threaded end I) of the tube and squeeze the rubber of the bladder between the rimmed flan e Z; and the washer d. Holes e may be ormed in the nut e for engagement by a spanner wrench. It will be noticed that the threaded end I) of the valve tube is made as short as can be for the purpose intended, that is to say, it is only lon enough to permit the nut e to be threaded down to clamp the rubtrue, however,

provide a simple, 1nex-- therefor, which maybe the bladder with. an

The end of it may be inflated v the end of the threaded section b.

v all in the interest of compactn ss so that no undue bulging ofthe ball at this point will result. in will be fiot'ed further that the rim on the flange b? and the rim into the rubber so as to squeeze it in such manner as to form an air-ti ht; union by p'u'ely mechanical devices. o far as is it has never been roposed her tofiore to squeeze the rubber by mechanical deviceswhich themselves are separable to anexte-nt sufficient to form an airtight u n; The construction described is not only inexpensive to manufacture but lends itself readily to assemblyvand removal for cement of parts. hile a washer (Z been illustrated it willbe'understood that" under some conditions it will not be n ces ry sin might be efi'ected without employing such a washer.

"The threaded end I; is threaded interiorly also, as at b to receive the male stern of a valve cap whose end f is formed broad and flatbut preferably with a slightly (sipherical finish. When this cap is threaded 'own into the upper end of the valve tube it will be evident that the body'of its head f5 adds] little in thickness to the devices protruding above the upper surface of the bladder a and that its spherical finish will materially facilitate the lacing of the cover over it, the edges of the cover adjacent to the laced opening ride u the spherical head f and hear there on. transverse slot f may be provided the head for engagement by a coin or tool to assistin screwing the cap home. As

d on the washer '05 are pressed the queezing actiondesired 9 being adapted to shown in Figure 2' the arrangement of parts is such that the exterior ofl the bladder a is nearly flush with the clampingnut e and so there is little danger of bulging of the cover over the valve. This is an end which must necessarily be sought for in a tootb'all,

Changes in details of construction and nierei matters of design are to be deemed ithin the scope of the invention.

I claim as my invention: i 1 a laying. ball, a bladder having an opening' tferein, a} valve tube having a thre ded portion extending through the ie n nd p s n a r m e ge on the tubeadapted to engage the inner side of the bladder adjacent the opening, a flexible rimmed washer through which the said threaded portion of the valve tube extends lying over the outer side of the bladder adjacent the opening, and a clamping nut threaded on the tube and forcing the flex- "ble rimmed washer against the bladder to squeeze the latter against the flange and form an air-tight union.

2 In a playingball, in combination with f the cover and bladder having a hole therein,

a valve tube extending through the hole, relatively movable devices associated with the valve tube to squeeze the rubber between the devices and clamp the tube in place with an air-tight union, the clamping device outside of the bladder lying nearly flush therewith and with the end of the valve tube, when in place, and a metal valve cap threaded into the end of the valve tube and having abroad fiat head shaped spherically to lie Under the cover of the football.

. This specification signed this Slth day of January, A. 1922.

HENRY mnenwav HART. 

